Coming to the party way late, but since Scotch is another of my passions, thought I'd weigh in. For a newbie to Scotch, I'd strongly recommend starting with a quality blend. The newbie palate just isn't ready to appreciate a single-malt. Single-malts don't necessarily taste better, they just have more character and more unique overtones. A good 12-year blend like Pinch is an excellent place to start for a newbie. It's affordable and it's damn good Scotch.

You'll reach a point in time where single malts are something you'll want to enjoy for their uniqueness. But for me, blends are the place to start and develop a palate.